Delve into the world of built-in app and system services available to developers. Discuss leveraging these services to enhance your app's functionality and user experience.

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How to provide a driving destination to CarPlay, like Calendar
If I have, say a doctor appointment in the Calendar app, and I'm leaving to go to it, the address will appear in Apple Maps on CarPlay. Forgive if I'm getting the details wrong, but I believe if I bring up the Map, it will be available to tap on, so I can quickly go there. I think it may also show up on one on the car-play screens that shows a few different panels. The point is, I really like this feature, and want to do it in my app. In my iOS app, the user can order food from a restaurant, and pick it up. I'm not ready to make this app a "quick service" app, but I want to give the user an easy to get to her location. Since I just ordered food, this means that I'll need to leave fairly quickly to go to the location. The Calendar app is able to offer a location because of scheduling, I'd like to do the same.
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125
Jun ’25
Message Filter Extension Impacts
Hello, We are using a Message Filter Extension (ILMessageFilterExtension) to classify SMS/iMessage content (junk vs allow) in our app. After testing on iOS 26.1, we want to confirm whether there are any behavioral, performance, or API-level changes that impact message filtering, such as: Changes in how often the filter extension is invoked Differences in classification accuracy or system overrides New privacy, entitlement, or permission-related restrictions Execution time limits or memory constraints Any changes specific to iMessage vs SMS filtering We did not find any explicit mention of Message Filter Extensions in the iOS 26.1 release notes and would like to confirm whether the existing behavior from previous iOS versions remains unchanged. Has Apple introduced any known or undocumented changes in iOS 26.1 that developers should be aware of when supporting Message Filter Extensions? Sometime I also found unpredictable behaviour on iOS version 18.5 or below, like sometime it works but sometimes starts working. Thanks in advance for any guidance.
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A Summary of the WWDC25 Group Lab - watchOS (Part 2)
At WWDC25 we launched a new type of Lab event for the developer community - Group Labs. A Group Lab is a panel Q&A designed for a large audience of developers. Group Labs are a unique opportunity for the community to submit questions directly to a panel of Apple engineers and designers. Here are the highlights from the WWDC25 Group Lab for watchOS (part 2). 7. For widget (complication) update budgets, is there an overall budget or are scheduled update separate from APNS updates? For context I have a complication that is updated on a fixed schedule (every 20 min), but there can be times of the day that are more "interesting" where pushes make sense. Like timeline updates, the system budgets WidgetKit push notifications and delivers them opportunistically. You can use WidgetKit push notification updates as an addition to timeline updates. For more information, see Updating widgets with WidgetKit push notifications. 8. It seems like the new Control Center widgets can be sourced from either the iPhone or directly on the Watch. Can we control whether a control appears in the watch list, or will it always be a combination of all controls from both sources? iPhone controls will be automatically available on the companion Apple Watch, even if they don’t have an associated watchOS app. When an iPhone control is tapped on the Apple Watch, the action is performed on the iPhone. Controls whose actions foreground the iOS app will not appear on Apple Watch. If a watchOS app has controls, no controls will appear on Apple Watch from the companion iOS app. 9. From UI/UX perspective, what are the current practices for Designing watchOS apps that feels native. The WWDC23 session Design and build apps for WatchOS 10 covers the details of watchOS design principles and how to apply them in your app using SwiftUI. A lot of SwiftUI APIs, such as NavigationSplitView, vertical tab view, list view, and etc, already implement the look and feel native to watchOS. 10. When adopting the new design system on watchOS, it seems like the main place we will use the glass effect is for our buttons in toolbar? Standard buttons in system apps seem to continue to use a flat appearance and full width. We leave the choice to you – You can use the new GlassButtonStyle API or .buttonStyle(.glass) to apply the liquid glass material to buttons. Learn when to use the Liquid Glass styles in Get to know the new design system. 11. Is there any way to gracefully migrate extensions when their bundleIDs have to change? e.g., converting a multi-target watch app to single-target, which drops the .watchkitextension from both the app and WidgetKit ext bundleIDs Updating a watchOS app to single-target is covered in TechNote TN3157: Updating your watchOS project for SwiftUI and WidgetKit. Xcode provides a tool that can do the update automatically, and the technote describes the details about how to use it and how to clean up the project after the automatic update. If there's something that technote doesn't address, please reach out to us on the Developer Forums. 12. What is the status of WatchConnectivity? Is that still the preferred way for iOS + watchOS communications? The Watch Connectivity framework is still supported, and is appropriate for the communication between an watchOS app and its companion iOS app. The systems also provide other APIs for the apps to exchange data. For example, watchOS supports Apple Push Notification service (APNs). If data for your widget changes on your server, your widget can receive a WidgetKit push notification, and update accordingly. That’s the preferred mechanism for widget updates.
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142
Jul ’25
Request Array with AppIntent
Hi everyone, i'm trying to request in a AppIntent an array of strings. But I want to give the user the chance to add more than one String. Yet, I do it so: import AppIntent struct AddHomework: AppIntent { // some Parameters @Parameter(title: "Tasks") var tasks: [String]? @Parameter(title: "New Task") //Only for the special request var input: String? private func collectTasks() async throws -> [String] { var collectedTasks: [String] = tasks ?? [] while true { if !collectedTasks.isEmpty { let addMore = try await $input.requestConfirmation(for: "Möchtest du noch eine Aufgabe hinzufügen?") if !addMore { break } } let newTask = try await $input.requestValue("Please enter your task:") collectedTasks.append(newTask) } return collectedTasks } @MainActor func perform() async throws -> some IntentResult { let finalTasks = try await collectTasks() // some more code return .result() } } But this is not working. The Shortcut is ending without requesting anything. But it is not crashing. I would thankfully for some help.
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337
Feb ’25
UE 5.4 Game Instantly Crash on iOS devices on Testflight
Hi, I'm working on a game for the past few years using first Unreal Engine 4, and now Unreal Engine 5.4.4. I'm experiencingan unusual crash on startup on some devices . The crash is so fast that I'm barely able to see the launching screen sometimes because the app closes itself before that. I got a EXC_CRASH (SIGABRT) so I know that it's a null pointer reference, but I can't quite wrap my head about the cause, I think that's something messed up in the packaging of the app, but here is where I'm blocked, I'm not that accustomed with apple devices. If someone has some advise to give, please, any help will be very valuable. Many thanks. Log : Crash Log on Ipad
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Feb ’25
Testing Live Caller ID Lookup Feature before App Store Release
Hi, We are working to integrate the Live Caller ID Lookup feature into our app. After submitting the request form via the link: https://developer.apple.com/contact/request/live-caller-id-lookup/, we received this reply from Apple: Apple’s OHTTP relay has been configured to talk to your OHTTP gateway. Now Live Caller ID Lookup should work for your application extension when distributed through App Store. However, before officially releasing our app on the App Store, we’d like to make sure the Live Caller ID Lookup feature is working as expected. To test this, we uploaded the app to TestFlight, and it successfully passed App Review. However, the test failed — we observed that the system tries to fetch the config from http://www.example.com/config instead of our actual configuration URL. Questions: Is this expected behavior when using TestFlight? Does the Live Caller ID Lookup feature only become active after full public release on the App Store? Is there any recommended way to test this feature before public release? Thank you!
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183
Oct ’25
Secure Integration of Apple Calendar (iCalendar) in a Third-Party App
Hi everyone, We’re integrating Apple Calendar (iCalendar) into our Codapet app but haven’t found any official Apple APIs for event management and synchronisation. Currently, we use CalDAV with Apple ID authentication and an app-specific password (ASP), storing the ASP encrypted in our database and decrypting it for each API call. We’re looking for a more secure and recommended approach to this integration. Does Apple provide dedicated APIs for calendar sync, or is there a better alternative to avoid sending the ASP with every request? Any guidance or best practices would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!
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153
Mar ’25
iOS Phone app bug: Long verdict text incorrectly truncated on call details screen
I've discovered a bug in the Phone app on iOS related to how long verdicts are displayed. When a call is identified by a third-party Caller ID app, long verdicts display correctly during the call (they auto-scroll) and in the call log (with an ellipsis at the end). However, on the call details screen, the text is strangely truncated - showing only the beginning of the string and the last word. For testing, I used this verdict: "Musclemen grow on trees. They can tense their muscles and look good in a mirror. So what? I'm interested in practical strength that's going to help me run, jump, twist, punch." I'll attach a screenshots demonstrating the problem:
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291
Mar ’25
Can I hide the NFC App Clip card?
Dear Apple Engineers: My app utilizes the App Clip experience. I would like to prevent the App Clip card from appearing when the host app is running in the foreground. How can this be achieved? I have observed that Alipay (in China) does not display an App Clip card when the device is tapped against a tag while the app is in the foreground, which indicates that this behavior is possible. Thank you for your assistance.
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Supported URL Schemes
Some Apple URL schemes are documented for third-party use. It’s fine to use those URL schemes for their intended purpose. Other Apple URL schemes are not officially documented. Their use is unsupported. If you rely on such implementation details, things might work, or they might not, and that state might change over time. IMPORTANT If you ship via the App Store, pay attention to clause 2.5.1 of the App Review Guidelines. The Apple URL scheme documentation is not always easy to find. I’m aware of the following: Apple URL Scheme Reference QA1924 Opening Keyboard Settings from a Keyboard Extension [This Q&A was retired years ago.] Preparing your app to be the default messaging app The doc comments for es_new_client in <EndpointSecurity/ESClient.h> Developer > Bug Reporting describes the applefeedback scheme Additionally, as questions about this most commonly crop up in the context of opening Settings (System Settings on macOS), I wanted to highlight the following: UIApplication.openSettingsURLString property (in Objective-C this is UIApplicationOpenSettingsURLString) UIApplication.openNotificationSettingsURLString property (in Objective-C this is UIApplicationOpenNotificationSettingsURLString) UIApplication.openDefaultApplicationsSettingsURLString property (in Objective-C this is UIApplicationOpenDefaultApplicationsSettingsURLString) AccessibilitySettings.openSettings(for:) method FIFinderSyncController.showExtensionManagementInterface() class method SMAppService.openSystemSettingsLoginItems() class method VSOpenTVProviderSettingsURLString global CXCallDirectoryManager.openSettings(completionHandler:) method SFSafariSettings.openExportBrowsingDataSettings() method SFSafariSettings.openExtensionsSettings(forIdentifiers:) method If your app needs to perform some action that’s not covered by the above, file an enhancement request for a supported way to do that. Make sure to describes your use case in detail. Share and Enjoy — Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com" Revision History 2026-01-07 Added a reference to the SFSafariSettings methods. 2025-10-28 Added a reference to UIApplication.openDefaultApplicationsSettingsURLString. Made other minor editorial changes. 2025-04-21 Added a reference to CXCallDirectoryManager.openSettings(completionHandler:). 2024-10-25 Added a reference to UIApplication.openNotificationSettingsURLString and VSOpenTVProviderSettingsURLString. Added a link to Preparing your app to be the default messaging app. 2024-10-01 Added info about the applefeedback URL scheme. 2024-09-29 Added a reference to SMAppService.openSystemSettingsLoginItems(). 2024-09-27 Added a titbit for Finder Sync extension developers. Added an invitation to file feedback. 2024-08-05 First posted.
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LiveCommunicationKit
What I want to achieve now is that when the app is not running, upon receiving a notification, it displays an interface similar to CallKit with accept and decline buttons. Here is part of my code: @available(iOS 17.4, *) class LiveCommunicationManager: NSObject, ConversationManagerDelegate { static let shared = LiveCommunicationManager() var isInvalidate:Bool = false var configuration: ConversationManager! override init() { let config = ConversationManager.Configuration( ringtoneName: "notes_of_the_optimistic", iconTemplateImageData: UIImage(named: "AppIcon")?.pngData(), // 图标的 PNG 数据 maximumConversationGroups: 1, // 最大对话组数 maximumConversationsPerConversationGroup: 1, // 每个对话组内最大对话数 includesConversationInRecents: false, // 是否在通话记录中显示 supportsVideo: false, // 是否支持视频 supportedHandleTypes: [.generic,.phoneNumber,.emailAddress] // 支持的通话类型 ) configuration = ConversationManager.init(configuration: config) } func reportIncomingCall(uuid: UUID, callerName: String) { configuration.delegate = self let local = Handle(type: .generic, value: callerName, displayName: callerName) let update = Conversation.Update(localMember: local,members: [local],activeRemoteMembers: [local]) Task{ do { try await configuration.reportNewIncomingConversation(uuid: uuid, update: update) print("成功报告新来电") } catch { print("报告新来电失败: \(error.localizedDescription)") } } } func conversationManager(_ manager: ConversationManager, conversationChanged conversation: Conversation) { print("会话状态改变了") } func conversationManagerDidBegin(_ manager: ConversationManager) { print("会话已经开始了") manager.delegate = self } func conversationManagerDidReset(_ manager: ConversationManager) { print("会话将要清除了") } func conversationManager(_ manager: ConversationManager, perform action: ConversationAction) { print("会话接听了") configuration.invalidate() } func conversationManager(_ manager: ConversationManager, timedOutPerforming action: ConversationAction) { print("会话超时了") } func conversationManager(_ manager: ConversationManager, didActivate audioSession: AVAudioSession) { print("会话激活了") } func conversationManager(_ manager: ConversationManager, didDeactivate audioSession: AVAudioSession) { print("会话死亡了") } } 在Appdelegate里设置了这些: func application(_ application: UIApplication, didReceiveRemoteNotification userInfo: [AnyHashable: Any], fetchCompletionHandler completionHandler: @escaping (UIBackgroundFetchResult) -&gt; Void) { // 在这里处理离线推送通知 completionHandler(.noData) // 返回后台任务完成 if let aps = userInfo["aps"] as? [String: Any], let alert = aps["alert"] as? [String : Any]{ // 静默推送的处理逻辑 if #available(iOS 17.4, *) { let manager = LiveCommunicationManager.shared if manager.isInvalidate { return } if let msgType = userInfo["msgType"] as? Int{ if msgType == 5{ manager.configuration.invalidate() }else{ let callerName = alert["title"] as? String ?? "Fanvil" manager.reportIncomingCall(uuid: UUID(), callerName: callerName) } } } } } Xcode has been configured with the necessary capabilities, such as Background Fetch, Voice over IP, Background Processing, and Push Notification. The issue now is that sometimes the code works as expected, allowing the app to wake up when not running and displaying the system interface with accept and decline buttons. However, after a few successful attempts, the app stops waking up, and no notification appears. But when I manually open the app, the didReceiveRemoteNotification method gets triggered. I’d like to know why this stops working after a few times.
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229
Apr ’25
Delays When Creating Advanced App Clip Experiences for Other Businesses
Hey there, I have an app where I create custom Advanced App Clip Experiences for other businesses which seems to be a valid thing. I do create them via API. Upon creation everything looks fine: when I go to App Store Connect -> App -> Advanced App Clip Experiences, I do see the new App Clip Experience I've just created. Their status is Received (as any other active experiences) and have a custom URL. The issue is weird timing when the Advanced App Clip Experience actually becomes available on the iPhone (can be triggered via App Clip Code, etc). Some experiences become available literally immediately but others take days (some take 1-2 days, some take ~5 days). I'm not sure why there's a bid difference for an Advanced App Clip to be actually active. Does anyone have any kind of experience with that? I don't change domain settings, app's settings, etc. I'm just creating a new experience (both via API or manually at App Store Connect) and I do have different "activation" times for different App Clips. Same when I delete an Advanced App Clip Experience, it will still be available for next couple days. I get there might be caching stuff, etc. But the difference is quite huge and makes no sense since as I've mentioned some clips become available immediately but some takes days to be available. Thank you!
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93
Jun ’25
Apps remain blocked after being unselected
Hi everyone, We're using the react-native-device-activity package to implement app blocking via Apple's Screen Time API. The blocking functionality works well: when the user selects apps and taps "Done," those apps get blocked as expected. However, we're facing an issue with unblocking apps that the user later unselects. Even after the user unchecks some apps and taps "Done" again, those previously selected (now unselected) apps remain blocked and still show the shield.
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113
May ’25
AppleTV returns to homescreen overnight
Hi We have an AppleTV app that is used to continuously display information (digital signage). One of our clients reports that their AppleTV returns to the homescreen by morning. While our recommendation is to setup Mobile Device Management to lock the AppleTV into running only our app, not every client will have the IT knowledge to set this up. So we're trying to figure out possible causes for the app getting closed. We've not received any crash reports, nor does the device give any indication the app crashed. The energy saving settings are set to run continuously without sleep. The client is reporting this happens every night, so it seems unlikely to be caused by tvOS updates. Are there other things I could rule out to find the cause of this issue? Any ideas are welcome, thanks!
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88
Dec ’25